Daily life can often become a cacophony of pings, zoom calls, commutes, and talking heads drowning out what’s meaningful and makes life worth living. Consumers often look to bubble baths, cocktails, and fantasy TV series to escape from the challenges of life. However, in our busy and noisy culture, brands have the capacity to inspire us and remind us of what it feels like to be courageous, kind, determined, fun, free, or unique, letting us feel and experience that which gets smothered by the effort of trying to get through another day.
Brands that connect with customers in that way are not just selling products; they are reminding us of the code we want to live by, offering a badge of honor, inviting us to reignite a passion, or deliver a boost of confidence just when we had forgotten the importance of it all.
To accomplish this feat brands need to dig deep, defining the core values of the brand and then articulating how they align with the values of the customers. Examples of brands that have accomplished this are worth reviewing.
- REI “Outside” announced in 2015 that stores would be closed the day after Thanksgiving, a sacred day in retail, reminding everyone to head outside. The outdoor retailer gave people permission to follow their passion in the fresh air.
- Nike’s Dream Crazier celebrated the power, determination and frustrations of dreaming big with the tag line “It’s only crazy until you do it. Just do it.”
- John Lewis’ Christmas spot featured a foster dad struggling to learn to skateboard in hopes of making his new foster daughter feel welcome. The sacrifice and kindness inspire us to be better people.
These iconic brands make it look easy, but it’s not. It’s not enough to create a campaign that touches heart strings. We’ve seen enough “sad-washing”. Consumers see right through it. Marketers need to invest in understanding the culture in which their brand and the customer co-exist, identifying the role the product and brand plays in the lives of customers and how it ignites those values we hold dear.
Those brand examples found an authentic expression of the brand’s core and understood why and how it would resonate with the customer. It wasn’t a guess. It was intentional truth-telling about the brand and the human condition.
When conducted respectfully and responsibly, this brand values audit can be a powerful tool for helping people reconnect with who we want to be and building loyalty along the way.
